Zucchini Ideas: Thai Crunch Salad

Thai Crunch Salad is a great way to use the zucchini and cucumbers from your garden.

My zucchini plants are already going crazy. If you are also awash in squash, here’s a great salad idea that uses raw zucchini. It also uses cucumbers, another prolific garden veggie. If you don’t have a garden, just pass the word around your neighborhood that you’d love some zucchini. There are many gardeners willing to give it away to a good home.

The peanut dressing sets the salad apart. But if you mix it with the salad beforehand, it turns an unappetizing muddy tan color. So let people add their own dressing just before eating it. If you’re not a fan of peanut dressing, try raspberry vinaigrette or ranch.

Keep reading past the recipe for more zucchini ideas and recipes.

Thai Crunch Salad

1 small zucchini, diced or julienned

1 medium cucumber, diced or julienned

1 16-ounce bag cole slaw mix

1 cup shredded or julienned carrots

1 bell pepper, chopped

1 1/2 cups shelled edamame, cooked and cooled

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

Toss all ingredients together. Makes about 10 2-cup servings. Drizzle 1 to 2 tablespoons of Peanut Sauce over each serving.

— Valerie Phillips

Peanut Sauce

1 cup pineapple juice

1/2 cup peanut butter (I used creamy)

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 teaspoons garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon onion powder or 1 teaspoon chopped green onions

1 tablespoon finely chopped cilantro

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (more if you want more heat)

1/2 teaspoon sesame oil, optional

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Place all the ingredients together in a microwave-proof bowl. Microwave for 1 to 2 minutes, or until the peanut butter melts. Mix well with a whisk or fork until the peanut butter is well-blended.

Taste, and if needed, add more pepper flakes, peanut butter, sugar, or soy sauce to get the flavor you desire.

The sauce will thicken when it cools. Makes about 1 1/2 cups dressing to use with Thai Crunch Chopped Salad.

Options: If you don’t have red pepper flakes, you can mix in a little sriracha or hot sauce, or red pepper jelly, to taste.

Yesterday a friend brought me some wonderful zucchini bread. The zucchini makes it deliciously moist! This is why there are so many recipe for baked goods like brownies, bread, cake, etc. that call for shredded zucchini.

Slice it on a pizza. It has a lot of moisture, so make it a thin layer to avoid sogging out your pizza.

Saute slices with 1 tablespoon of butter per medium-size zucchini. Add salt, pepper, a teaspoon of onion flakes and a teaspoon of garlic powder, and any other seasonings you favor. Zucchini on its own is pretty bland, so it can take on a lot of other types of seasonings. As you can see by the photo, I like to saute it until it’s there are golden brown edges, for a caramelized flavor.

Chop it into an omelet or scrambled eggs. Add a half-cup of chopped zucchini to this Mountain Man Mug, microwaved in a cup so there’s no pan to wash.